Fairmont Miramar Bungalows

“Average”

The bathroom tub did not drain well and I alerted the front desk that water was filling up causing flooding in the tub. A maintenance person came out and left but the problem was not fixed. Also, had to wait 2 hours after check-in because the room was not ready.

“Needs some TLC”

Stayed at the Fairmont for 2 nights / 3 days at the beginning of June. On arrival the front desk staff was great and helpful checking in. After that the problems started. The first being unclear signage on which elevator bank we were meant to take. We took one and went to the 3rd floor to find ... more

Stayed at the Fairmont for 2 nights / 3 days at the beginning of June. On arrival the front desk staff was great and helpful checking in. After that the problems started. The first being unclear signage on which elevator bank we were meant to take. We took one and went to the 3rd floor to find our room- we walked up and down to not find our room number. Our room wasn’t in that wing but in another with no directions or signs to find where we were meant to go. We went back downstairs in the 1 working elevator in that wing We then asked someone to show us where the other elevator bank was, and literally ALL of them were broken, so they directed us to the service elevator. We thought this was funny to start and figured someone would have them fixed in the morning since it was the weekend. We got to our “upgraded” room- it was meant to be 2 queens but it was 2 small doubles. They were comfortable but small. The bathroom was fine but the shower water never got warm enough at any point during our stay. Bars and restaurant were good when you could get the attention of the bartenders. The main issue was that they never fixed any of the elevators. When we were getting ready to check our Sunday evening only 1 service elevator was working to share with guests and staff. After 4x of it going up and down we were able to get into it. The girl we met in the elevator said she had been there multiple times before and they are always broken and apparently they are renovating the hotel soon so don’t want to bother fixing them? It sounded reasonable- what other 4 star hotel has 8 busted elevators at once time for multiple days? We needed to get to the airport so the elevators set us back an additional 15 minutes and we went to check out. At checkout we told the girl we wanted to split the charges over 3 cards - 1 on file and 2 handed to her. She split the card 2 ways and then seemed confused when we asked her to credit us and do it again. She didn’t do it. One week later and multiple phone calls I think we have finally figured out the bill. The property is beautiful overall, but with the broken elevators and other issues, not sure I would stay again.

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“3 STAR HOTEL EXPERIENCE - 5 STAR PRICES”

Allow me to start with the positives: the staff is lovely and tries hard and the location is fantastic. Unfortunately, the staff and location cannot make up for the entirely unacceptable experience we had. Let me start with the elevators. We were here for 6 nights. At no time during our stay were... more

Allow me to start with the positives: the staff is lovely and tries hard and the location is fantastic. Unfortunately, the staff and location cannot make up for the entirely unacceptable experience we had. Let me start with the elevators. We were here for 6 nights. At no time during our stay were the elevators functioning. Instead, we were told to use the service elevators. Aside from the fact that they were in poor condition, they were slow and at times simply didn’t show up. So we got to walk up to our room on the 7th floor multiple times during our stay. When I asked at the front desk when the elevators would be fixed I was told matter of factly that they are broken and would not be back in service during our stay. Apparently, and you should check this before staying here, the elevators constantly break and it is a known issue and the hotel does not want to invest in proper repairs because the hotel is slated to be demolished and rebuilt so the owners do not want to invest in capital improvements. This adds up given the rest of our experience. The rooms: they are tired and in poor shape. The beds cave into the middle. The beds also are not attached to the walls so when your partner moves, you move. The bathrooms - old, small and in poor condition. Let’s talk about the resort fee. It’s for things like complimentary bikes. They have maybe 5 bikes. Good luck getting one. Worse yet the bikes are in horrid condition - old, rusted and beat up. Just ask the hotel to send you pictures if you think I am exaggerating. Now let’s talk about coffee service in the morning. There is none. When we travel and go to 5 star properties, my wife and I wake early and go to the lobby and drink coffee, read, work and relax. Not here. They have no coffee service. Rather, they charge you $6 for a cup of coffee at some place called “Dogtown”. How about the pool? It’s tiny and in need of a complete redo, something no doubt that is in the works but for those who have to stay here now, just know it’s nothing like a 5 star experience. And that’s the main point - if you are expecting anything approaching a 5 star resort experience you will not find it here. Rather, you will find a totally acceptable 3 star hotel that is hording cash in anticipation of a demolition and rebuild. That’s fine if they were honest about it and didn’t charge over $700 a night. But they are pretending to be something they aren’t and I hope anyone looking to stay here is aware before booking because after spending almost a week here I can confidentially tell you to avoid it if you think you are checking into anything approaching 5 or even 4 stars. I hope the hotel takes my feedback seriously and addresses these issues or accurately describes the experience because the way it is portrayed is not the experience you will have. I highly recommend that anyone looking for a 5 star resort experience stay elsewhere in Santa Monica as there are plenty of other lovely options where you will not feel as though you have been taken advantage of.

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